Happy days: Cincy's economy has more workers and more people seeking work than ever

Unemployed father of two, Michael Lopez (L) waits for work outside a temporary labor office in the southern Californian town of El Centro, a town of 50,000 people where 30.4 percent of the work-age population are without employment, on October 28, 2010. According to the latest data 13 US cities and towns -- including nine in California -- have a jobless rate of over 15 percent. The two "recession capitals," as American media have dubbed them, are El Centro -- 365 km southeast of Los Angeles -- and the neighbouring town of Yuma in Arizona, where 27.2 percent of people are out of work. Both are in traditional farming regions whose economy has always depended on Mexican seasonal workers who come to work legally in the US due to special status enjoyed by residents of the border area. In El Centro, most unemployed people over 45 can expect to be without a job for up to two years; for those below 30 the wait is generally less than six months, but usually involves a string of temporary jobs in shops or fields. AFP PHOTO/Mark RALSTON (Photo credit should read MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images)(Photo: AFP/Getty Images)

After nine years, our economy is finally and entirely out of the ditch.

In June, nearly a decade after the Great Recession ended, employment hit a new record in the Cincinnati region. Roughly 10,000 more people were on the job in the 15-county region than in June 2017.

More important, the region's labor force – made up of employed people and those actively looking for work – hit a record in June, going past the level hit in June 2008, according to new data released this week by Ohio officials.

Economists generally see people returning to the workforce as a sign that workers are positive about the economy, because they think they can get a job they want – and at a wage or a salary they find acceptable. A growing workforce also is a sign that discouraged workers, who aren't counted in the unemployment numbers because they're stopped looking for a job, are back and seeking work.